The Power of Positivity

I am amazed how positivity can affect a person.

When working in elementary schools with students, it is obvious how a smile can affect their day. Positive feedback, even for doing a small task correctly, can be the affirmation that a child needs to stay motivated and achieve within the classroom. Having positive reinforcements throughout the day for children who are on task and meeting expectations can be a great way to keep them engaged in the classroom and working harder to receive more positive feedback. Providing a child the opportunity to make a decision, no matter how small, can change a bad day to a good day.

It is an interesting transition that I have every time I go to an elementary school in the morning and then return to the college campus for the rest of the day. The positivity that the classroom thrives on is not seen in the college atmosphere as much as it should.

There was one day when I was working in a kindergarten classroom and I could tell one of the little boys was just not very happy that day. And so, I pulled this boy aside and asked him to help me with a favor – I had him pick out the book that I would read to the class. He chose a Dr. Seuss book and he had a smile on his face for the rest of the day. He came up to me before I read the book and he told me that he did not tell anyone what book he chose because it was our secret. This was such a small decision, but it changed that student’s whole day.

One day I returned to Creighton after spending the morning at an elementary school and I smiled at every person that I saw, whether I knew them or not, because that is what I do that when I am in elementary schools. The reaction that I received from the majority of people was positive. I did not go out of my way to do this action. Rather, if I made eye contact with someone, anyone, I gave them a smile. And I felt more positive at the end of the day because of the positive feedback that I received from strangers throughout the day.

I love smiling at a child and watching them smile back at me. And I am intrigued when I smile at adults and see more hesitation before they show their pearly whites. I am not quite sure what changed from childhood to adulthood, but for most adults, they do not share the happiness and positivity that they have.  But on any day that I connect with anyone, stranger or friend, I find that my overall mood increases. Sharing my positivity and my joy of being alive with the world just adds to my positivity and joy. It is simple and easy and yet, it can change my overall mood dramatically. 

Kindly,

Anne Daly

Junior, Elementary Education with an Endorsement in Special Education

Inspire... Influence... Innovate

On Friday, March 16, 2012 I had the privilege of attending the 3^rd annual Women’s Summit sponsored by the Committee on the Status of Women. The Summit has quickly become a special annual event for me and many others at Creighton. This year’s Summit charged its participants to Inspire, Influence and Innovate. As I reflect on these powerful words, I am reminded of where I find my inspiration, and have chosen to dedicate this post to those who inspire me.

As a partner/spouse, a mother, and a professional committed to students and to learning, I often find my days to be more hectic and full than I had planned on them being. My days begin well before sunrise and often go well into the evening, but I thrive on the people that surround me every day at Creighton.  And I have found that it is when I pause for a moment and make the time to be present with the people that surround me every day, I find my inspiration.

Arriving at Creighton in 1997, I never in my wildest dreams imagined that I would be here 15 years later. But I have to admit that I am smitten by Creighton. We are blessed to have a rich tradition that was inspired by the Creightons, specifically the Wareham sisters, Mary Lucretia and Sarah Emily. We all are the daily benefactors of their generosity. Inspired by a vision and blessed with the means, these sisters were instruments of the founding of Creighton University, CUMC and St. John's Church. Throughout the past 130 plus year, the idea of Creighton has flourished and served many.

Doubly blessed, Creighton was started in 1878 by the Jesuits at the request of Bishop James O’Connor. The Jesuits brought with them a rich tradition and values that still guide our community today. As members of the Creighton community, we are inspired by the Ignatian tradition, and have many reminders of how we are all called to share our gifts and talents for the Greater Glory of God.

My inspiration comes from the people in the Creighton community that share freely of their gifts and talents every single day, and most often without even knowing how much they lift my spirits. That being said, there are a few special women that I want to salute in this post because they are the people that make Creighton special to me.

Almost every morning when I arrive at the Harper Center, I have the distinct pleasure of being greeted by Doris. Her gentle spirit and warm heart are easily felt by all who take a moment to greet her as she works to keep the Harper Center clean and inviting for all who enter. She knows me and cares about me. Always making sure I’m taking care of myself. Another person that goes above and beyond to care for others in our community is Erica. She works many hours with Sodexo while raising a beautiful family. Erica shares her hope for the future with me while opening doors of opportunity for her children by teaching them the value of an education. My interactions with these two beautiful women remind me of humanity and give me hope for the future.

There is trio of women that mean the world to me. They are my calm in the storm and often serve as the cornerstone to a fast-pace, dynamic work environment. Sarah, Joan and Cheryl, operate in a stealth-like mode, quick to swoop in to save the day and then they quietly go about their day without the expectation of thanks or recognition. They exemplify the true spirit of Creighton by their words and by their actions. Their mission is to serve others and they do it very well.

Finally, there is another trio of women that I am privileged to know. Michele, Desiree and Allison were the masterminds of this year’s Women’s Summit and amazing leaders with a vision to improve the status of women at Creighton. I am inspired to be more because of these amazing ladies. Their labor of love for the Creighton community was the 3^rd annual Women’s Summit, Inspire, Influence, and Innovate. Resulting from their vision, hard work and dedication, these women demonstrate the Jesuit value of contemplatives in action and their thoughtful vision is challenging the Creighton University community to be the best it can be.

Kindly,

Dr. Tanya Winegard

Associate Vice President for Student Life

Birth of an Advocate

In 2008, my husband and I received the exciting news that we would soon be parents.  Interspersed with our excitement was a maze of informing the appropriate people, filling out FMLA, disability, and benefits paperwork, training coworkers and redistributing work.  I remember specifically musing during that time, ‘I’ve never had six weeks off before, what do you do with that time?’.  Following a difficult birth resulting in an emergency c-section, I soon learned. While healing from surgery, I was awake every 2-3 hours for feeding, changing and becoming acquainted with our new little one. I had the opportunity to see his first smile, coos, learn his cries for hunger, changing and boredom, and his preferences for play and interaction, which were fundamental in establishing our bond and a pattern in our lives.  Ironically, after six weeks I was still healing and wondered how some return to work that quickly.  Nevertheless, at 8 weeks my doctor signed my ‘Fit for Duty’ paperwork and I returned to work.

While discussing my story with others, I quickly realized how lucky I was to receive that time off.  With no parental leave policy in place at Creighton, stories were prevalent of the difficult situation new parents face.  Often, faculty members return to work days or weeks after childbirth to fulfill teaching or other obligations. Staff members and students are not immune either.  For example, a staff member depleted her leave while on bed rest and had to return to work early while her daughter was still in critical condition in the neonatal intensive care unit.  Another staff member had two children too close together and hadn’t had time to accrue sick or vacation time to cover her leave.  Notably, job security isn’t the only risk, if an employee doesn’t have accrued vacation or sick leave, or for whatever reason do not have short-term disability coverage, the employee may have to take an unpaid leave. Likewise, a graduate student had to be back after three days, because ‘student workers’ do not qualify for FMLA and there is no guarantee the position or stipend will be held. Complicating this situation, daycare centers will not accept infants prior to 6-8 weeks, so the new parent must have a stable support system in order to achieve this early return.  Furthermore, whether or not travel to another country is involved, adoptive parents are only able to use vacation to cover their leave, diminishing their ability to bond with their child.   Unfortunately, these are merely examples of a systemic problem.  While reflecting on these experiences in relation to the Creighton University mission and how it recognizes “the importance of family life” and the core Jesuit value of Cura Personalis, I struggled with how we live out these principals.  In accordance with our mission, I believe we can do better!

As a result, I have had the distinct privilege of working with a group of amazing and talented individuals on the Committee on the Status of Women as we crafted a proposal requesting paid parental leave for Creighton benefits eligible faculty and staff, which will be presented to the cabinet soon.  I believe this plan better adheres to our core values and will be strategic in recruitment and retention of talented faculty and staff. In addition, members of our committee have put together a checklist for leave that Human Resources can provide to expectant parents to dispel the mystery associated with appropriate forms and deadlines regarding parental leave.  Together, I hope these steps are effective in alleviating some of the stress associated with becoming a new parent. 

When aspiring to improve your world, one doesn’t always need to look far.  What is your passion? How do you strive to impact your world?  What can you do to be an agent of change?

Kindly,

Marsha Pierce

Graduate Student, Biomedical Sciences

Celebrating Women's History Month

Well, it’s March Madness, and for some of us, that means more than basketball mania (though we surely ALSO chant “Go, Jays!” as our men and women athletes head into tournament play). March is National Women’s History Month (WHM), which means that various groups around campus will be busy hosting events for the campus community in weeks ahead (more on that shortly). As WHM gets underway today, first, I want to wish the Creighton community “Happy Women’s History Month!” We here at Creighton have marked Women’s History Month for a number of years, but since some students recently asked me how it got started and what it’s about, here’s a mini-history.

Women’s history was an unknown topic in the K-12 curriculum and in public consciousness as recently as the 1970’s. To rectify this, the Commission on the Status of Women in Sonoma County California initiated Women’s History Week in 1978. Leaders of organizations for women and girls soon initiated local observances of Women’s History Week throughout the country, and in 1981, the original California organizers, spurred by the interest spreading across the country, secured a Congressional Resolution, sponsored by Representative Barbara Mikulski (Dem – Maryland) and Senator Orrin Hatch (Rep – Utah), declaring a “National Women’s History Week.” Throughout the 1980’s state departments of education encouraged celebrations of National Women’s History Week, seeing them as a means to pursue equity goals within classrooms. The week-long celebration was extended to a month in 1987, when the National Women’s History Project (NWHP) petitioned Congress to expand the celebration to the entire month of March, resulting in a Resolution passed in both houses of Congress with bipartisan support. Since 1987, then, six American presidents have issued Proclamations in support of National Women’s History Month. Every year the month of March affords an opportunity to learn more about women’s experiences and to honor their achievements and contributions to our world.

Each year the National Women’s History Project selects a theme for the national celebration and recognizes national honorees whose lives and work testify to that theme. The theme of WHM 2012 is Women’s Education, Women’s Empowerment. That theme is especially meaningful for us here at Creighton, given our identity as an educational institution. The history of Creighton, once an all-male institution but now co-educational, reflects the advance of women’s education that was achieved nationally thanks to the efforts of previous generations of women in partnership with men who shared their vision. Those efforts culminated in 1972 with Title IX of the Education Codes of the Higher Education Act Amendments. This legislation, passed in 1977, prohibited gender discrimination by federally funded institutions and facilitated women’s fuller participation in all aspects of education, from scholarships to athletics to classes formerly closed to women. To learn more about this year’s theme and the women being honored for their contributions to the advance of women’s education, visit www.nwhp.org.

Women’s History Month, then, affords an opportunity for us to learn, to celebrate, to reflect and give thanks, to advocate, and to renew our commitment to that precious gospel and Ignatian ideal of justice (right relation), in this case, gender justice. There are lots of ways to do so; for example, attend some of the WHM organized by various campus groups - the Lieben Center, Women’s and Gender Studies, the Committee on the Status of Women, the Kenefick Chair in Humanities, among others. These include a celebration of Women’s Words of Wisdom, lectures (e.g., the Tenth Annual Women and Religion lecture which this year focuses on the REAL “First Lady,” biblical Eve), films about women and body image, panel discussions, even a Women’s Summit. And/Or . . . organize your own celebration with some friends or your sorority sisters, or watch a film about women. Since this is an election year, Iron-Jawed Angels, about the women who won us women the right to vote, would be a good choice; or to learn more about the struggles of women around the world, watch Academy Award winning Saving Face, or read books like A Thousand Sisters or Half the Sky. To get involved in advocacy on behalf of women, check-out the websites of organizations committed to the advancement of women; they are listed at the back of the book Half the Sky. Other ideas: think about taking a WGS course next fall or declaring a WGS minor (yes, that “MINOR that makes a MAJOR difference”); support our women athletes during March Madness by taking a seat in the stands and cheering for our ‘Jays; celebrate the women who grace your life; express your thanks to a woman mentor; be a mentor to a girl or woman who needs and wants what you have to offer. Above all, let’s be thankful for the education that empowers us to be ourSELVES . . . for OTHERS. 

Kindly,

Dr. Susan Calef

Assistant Theology Professor

Director, Women's and Gender Studies